I Regret Not Joining Politics During My Time As Minister- Ezekwesili

Former Education Minister, Oby Ezekwesili has expressed regret over not getting involved in Nigeria’s political system while occupying various ministerial positions in the country.

Ezekwesili was the Minister of Minerals and later of Education for two years, from 2005 to 2007 until she was elected Vice President of the World Bank- Africa Region in Washington DC between 2007 and 2012.

Speaking in Abuja on Thursday at the inaugural Africa Conference 2023 and graduation of the School of Politics, Policy, and Governance (SPPG) Classof2023, Ezekwesili said: “When we were in government and policing people in government, we felt bad to be called a politician”.

“Pluto always says that those who think that politics is beneath them will ultimately be ruled by their inferiors. At that time those of us who were in the ministerial group thought that we were not politicians, but you know, we were foolish people.

“We were the ones Pluto was referring to and we didn’t know. But what made me know, as we left governance, thinking that a lot of important foundations we left would be developed, it took less than a year for quite a number of the same foundations to be wrecked.

“What do you think wrecked it? Politics. the same thing we disdained was what destroyed the little progress we made. there is no way you should repeat the pattern.”

Noting her regrets, Ezekwesili said “no African middle-class professional should repeat the foolishness that we did by eliminating ourselves from politics. That is why I celebrate everyone who comes through the SPPG program, you are wiser than us.”

She added there is a need to awaken Africa’s Middle class which is closing its nose to politics because politics touches everything as the country and Africa at large are in a crisis.

“Politics touch everything. Be it the private sector, citizens, health, and whatever sector of life. We are graduating in the 100s what should be graduating is about 10,000. We are in a crisis. we can’t be graduating like Kennedy schools in America, where the system is designed to produce quality minds, although they are debatable these days. Because they too have told me to come to do fixed politics for them” she said.

She beckoned on the youth to take the responsibility of getting involved in the political affairs of the nation while noting that the revolution had started.

“The revolution has started, revolutions are best when they are strategic, deliberate, and very wild intention. So, what I believe we are doing today is to give that expression on what we must do. African citizens and African leaders are one person at a time.

Also speaking at the event, Martha Kurua a Kenyan politician said Africans must do the bit of what is required to harness it’s resources.

Kurua added, “We are here to begin that conversation, seek solidarity, give each other strength, and unite the fire in us. we want to create a miracle, and if you want a miracle to happen, you either create the miracle or be the miracle yourself.”